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“GEORGE deserved it.”

Those were the congratulatory words coming from the fastest man on wheels in the Western Hemisphere, Njisane Phillip, as he positively reacted to Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s recognition of Olympian George Bovell III, on his historic bronze medal performance in the 200m Individual Medley at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Bovell III was specially rewarded by the Prime Minister with $300,000 cash at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s on Thursday.

Also on the receiving end of this hefty sum were both Olympic bronze medallist 4x100m and 4x400m relay team members.

They were Richard “Torpedo” Thompson, Keston Bledman, Marc Burns and Emmanuel Callender (4x100m) and Lalonde Gordon, Jarrin Solomon, Ade Alleyne-Forte and Deon Lendore (4x400m).

The Prime Minister stated in her feature address that Bovell III was “never rewarded by the former PNM regime for earning the country its first and only Olympic swim medal.”

Phillip was pleased with the justified reward for the Olympic swimmer.

“It was definitely nice to see them reward him after so long. It’s been four years and George not getting anything (reward) is sort of sore.

“So to shine a light on him, I think they gave him what he deserved. He was Trinidad and Tobago’s only medallist in swimming in 2004 and he needed to be recognised for his achievement. No matter how long ago it was.“

He continued, “George set the pace and opened the Olympic medal haul for Trinidad and Tobago in swimming. He needed to be recognised and rewarded. He deserved every bit of it.”

Reflecting on his Olympic campaign, where he cemented himself as the fourth fastest male sprint cyclist in the world, Phillip was grateful for the highly competitive exposure.

His journey throughout the Olympic qualifiers and the Games have indeed taken a toll on the flourishing cyclist.

However, the youngster chose to learn from his historic performance and direct his competitive focus for the 2013 season.

“A great experience. I would say I knew what it took to get where I’m at right now. But, I definitely have to work harder. I’m more than satisfied how everything went and I’m glad that local cycling got a shining light on it now. The next four years, well the public now know what it’s about and I want to continue to bring a lot of hype to it (TT cycling). I’m looking forward to see how it goes within the next couple of years,” he added.

While the local rider continues his post-Olympic rest and relaxation at home in TT, he is eager to get back onto the competitive circuit. Phillip made known that he is presently doing a lot of gym-work and prepping himself for the forthcoming competitive year of heated cycling.

By JONATHAN RAMNANANSINGH

Source: www.newsday.co.tt

United States Olympic and Paralympic athletes were today hailed by President Barack Obama during a special ceremony at the White House.

"We could not be prouder of you," he told more than 400 athletes gathered on the South Lawn.

"You gave us a summer that we will never forget."

Obama did not attend London 2012 and was represented by his wife, Michelle, who led the official delegation, and US vice-president Joe Biden. 

Obama nevertheless described himself as the "fan in chief" and said that he managed to see some of the Games.

"I have mastered the DVR," he said.

"I was able to catch a little bit of everything."

The US regained their position at the top of the Olympics medals table in London having finished behind China in Beijing four years ago.

They finished with a total of 104 medals, including 49 gold, their best ever performance in a Games outside of America. 

The Paralympic team, meanwhile, finished sixth with a total of 97 medals, 31 of which were gold.

"You could not have been better ambassadors or better representatives of the United States," Obama said 

The US flag-bearers at the Games - Olympic fencer Mariel Zagunis and Paralympic swimmer Brad Snyder, a Navy veteran - presented the Obamas with flags carried during the events' Ceremonies. 

"All of us are tremendously proud to represent the United States, so visiting the White House today, as a team, means a great deal to us and marks a perfect ending to a great summer for Team USA," said Zagunis, who appeared in her third Olympics at London.

"To be selected by my team to carry the flag in the Opening Ceremony was a huge honour, but it's the camaraderie and shared experience of being a member of Team USA that we cherish most of all, and that is what we are celebrating today."

Synder, a Navy lieutenant, claimed the S11 100 and 400 metres titles, the second on the first anniversary of losing his sight while serving in Afghanistan.

"It is an honour to be here at the White House with my teammates to celebrate the culmination of an unforgettable experience at the London Paralympic Games," he said.

"I think I can speak for all of us when I say we couldn't be more proud to be members of Team USA or more thankful to all who have supported us as we worked to achieve our goals of competing at the highest levels of sport."

Scott Blackmun, the chief executive of the United States Olympic Committee, praised the success of the team at London 2012. 

"Of equal importance is recognising the manner in which America's finest athletes conducted themselves off the field of play, truly representing the very best of the United States," he said.

"That is something that should make all fans and supporters of Team USA extremely proud."

By Duncan Mackay

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Brazil's athletes are to receive an additional $500 million (£308 million/€382 million) to help them prepare for Rio 2016, where they will be aiming for a place among the top ten in the medals table at the Olympics and top five at the Paralympics.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff (pictured) launched the new initiative at the Presedential Palace in Brasília and said the money from the programme, called "The Brasil Medalhas 2016" (Medals for Brazil 2016), will be spent on supporting athletes, purchasing modern training equipment and building more than 20 new Olympic training centres.

The country had already earmarked $750 million (£462 million/€573 million) to help athletes prepare for Rio 2016, the first time the Games have ever been held in South America. 

About $150 million (£92 million/€115 million) was invested ahead of the London Games, when Brazil finished 22nd in the Olympics medal table.

Brazil won a record 17 medals overall, with three golds, two more than it did in Beijing and in Atlanta, to finish 22nd overall.

In the Paralympics, meanwhile, the team came seventh with a total of 43 medals, including 21 gold, their best ever performance. 

"This plan will improve what we consider essential – the direct support to the athlete – through the Podium Grant and Coach Grant, among other initiatives," said Rousseff.

"It will also offer support in sports infrastructure and technology through training centres.  

"It is fundamental that our country has high quality training centres. 

"We will offer 22 training centres to support athletes and help them bring forward this ambition that every athlete has inside.  

"It is also the ambition of 194 million Brazilians, expressed in you [athletes]."

Two thirds of these funds will come from the Federal Government's general budget and one third will come from investments by state-owned companies.

Eight companies have already signed up to the programme.

They are Banco do Brasil, Banco do Nordeste, BNDES (Brazilian Development Bank), Caixa Econômica Federal, Correios (Brazilian Post and Telegraph Corporation), Eletrobras, Infraero and Petrobras and Petrobras

These resources will be an addition to the Ministry of Sport's existing budget allocations for high performance sports and also in addition to funding from the Sports Incentive Law and Agnelo/Piva Law, which allocate two per cent of revenues from the national lottery to Olympic, Paralympic, school and university-related sports.

Brazil made its debut at the Olympics at Antwerp in 1920 when they finished 15th overall, which remains their highest ever position, although only 29 countries competed.

In more recent times their best performance was at Athens in 2004 when they were 16th overall with a total of ten medals, five of which were gold.

Based on the medals table at London 2012, Brazil will need to win a minimum of ten golds to achieve their top ten target in Rio.

Brazil made their Paralympic debut at Heidelberg in 1972, when they failed to win a medal.

But since Atlanta in 1996, when they finished 37th with 21 medals, including two gold, they have been climing steadily up the table, culminating in their performance in London, making a top five position at Rio 2016 a realistic ambiton.

"The 2016 Olympics open our horizons and challenge us to improve our efforts to achieve more medals," said Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo.

"The plan Brasil Medalhas represents a resource of one billion real (£308 million/$500 million/€382 million)over the next four years, already present and figured in the budget of 2013 to 2016, additional to the existing 1.5 billion (£462 million/$750 million/€573 million) real that was already intended for high performance sports."

The money will be invested in sports where Brazil believes it has the greatest opportunity of winning medals at Rio 2016.

Already 21 Olympic sports and 15 Paralympic sports have been identified as the focus of this programme.

The selected Olympic sports are: open water swimming, athletics, basketball, boxing, canoeing, BMX cycling, women's football, artistic gymnastics, equestrian, judo, wrestling, swimming, modern pentathlon, taekwondo, tennis, shooting, triathlon, sailing, volleyball and beach volleyball.

The Paralympic sports are: athletics, boccia, canoeing, cycling, wheelchair fencing, five-a-side and seven-a-side football, goalball, weight lifting, equestrian, judo, swimming, rowing, table tennis and sitting volleyball.

The Ministry of Sport, Brazilian Olympic and Paralympic Committees, national sports federations and States will jointly manage the programme, which is expected to be given official approval in December and finalised next January.

By Duncan Mackay

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Rugby Sevens' addition to the Rio de Janeiro Olympic programme is resulting in global demand for New Zealand coaching expertise.

As 10-time world series champions since the international circuit started in 1999, New Zealand's pedigree in the game is hard to match.

Countries such as Olympic hosts Brazil, China and India have sought or are seeking help. More countries are expected to tap into that knowledge base as 2016 Games budgets are finalised in the coming months.

Russia is another example of a country seeking to expand into the sport. Moscow hosts the World Cup in June next year.

Steve McHardy, general manager of the International Rugby Academy New Zealand, says they are now tailoring courses for what they expect to be an overseas thirst for sevens knowledge. The courses include input from sevens doyens such as Craig de Goldi, Karl Te Nana and former All Black Christian Cullen.

"We're starting to run specialised sevens coaching courses [the next one is from October 19-21] to cater for what we see is a surge in the market," McHardy says.

"There is a lack of quality sevens coaches because the past focus from the IRB and most national unions was on 15-a-side. That is changing so we're customising programmes to deal with it.

"There is an expectation the game will explode leading to 2016 in Brazil. It's a direction we're happy to go in. There are a lot of developing nations who struggle with the resources required to make inroads in 15s, but in sevens, they see a real opportunity. Kenya's success is a good example since the advent of the world series.

"With the IRB investing money and, in many cases, the access to national Olympic funds, it is a fledgling industry. The Caribbean and Asia are two examples. We hosted India as they prepared for the Delhi Commonwealth Games. A lot of the Caribbean nations have natural speed and for the US it could be appealing for guys who can't quite cut it in the NFL. Murray [Mexted, IRANZ founder and former All Black] is doing a lot of work with them."

ON THE provincial front, Canterbury and Taranaki lead the way. Canterbury has signed a development deal with the Brazilian Rugby Confederation while Taranaki is working with Beijing's Xiannongtan Athletics School, which has produced several Olympic champions.

Canterbury and Crusaders rugby boss Hamish Riach says it's an honour to partner the Olympic hosts but the overall aim is to advance rugby's global development.

"The Brazilians are ambitious and we believe there is a real upside internationally.

"It came out of a presentation I delivered in Auckland at the World Cup.

"The president of the Brazilian union got in touch afterwards. We realise it's a partnership with people who want to see rugby maximised.

"Obviously Brazil is a country dominated by football but they have lofty goals to get rugby recognised on a par with sports like basketball andvolleyball."

"Essentially it is a high-performance programme encompassing strength, conditioning, knowledge, fitness; the whole gamut. They'll be coming out to work with us. They'll have camps and play locally. In turn we'll also be helping them out of their base in Sao Paulo."

Canterbury provincial coaching team Tabai Matson and Scott Robertson have been dispatched on reconnaissance missions. It is estimated Brazil has about 10,000 players in 115 teams but their president Sami Arap Sobrinho has been quoted as saying they want to increase that to 500,000 players by 2030 in a country of almost 200 million people.

Meanwhile, Taranaki will be hosting a camp for 46 Chinese comrades (including coaches) during November and December. The relationship has evolved after 18 months' work by former chief executive officer Mark Robinson and former player development manager Michael Collins.

Building blocks included the Taranaki union hosting a Chinese delegation during the World Cup. Xiannongtan Athletics School hopes to have players in the Chinese Olympic squad as a result.

The programme will be delivered by a number of Taranaki rugby's high-performance team including provincial coach Colin Cooper, former Scotland sevens coach Jono Phillips and current national sevens skills coach Clark Laidlaw. National sevens coach Gordon Tietjens will also work with the group for two days.

By Andrew Alderson

Source: www.nzherald.co.nz

The 70,000 Games Maker volunteers, so widely praised for helping to make the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games a huge success, are set to be honoured with a special limited edition stamp, the Royal Mail have announced.

The stamp will feature an image of a group of volunteers, in their distinctive purple and red uniforms, with the London 2012 Olympic Stadium in the background.

The stamp will be one of a final set of four stamps that that the Royal Mail will issue to mark the Games in a set called "Memories of London 2012".

The set is due to be released on September 27 while other memories featured on the stamps include the spectacular fireworks display during the Paralympic Opening Ceremony and a First Class stamp shows the ParalympicsGB team entering the stadium to conclude the procession of the participating athletes.

The final stamp shows a scene from the Olympic Closing Ceremony in which athletes and officials of all the countries formed a human version of the Union Flag in the Olympic Stadium.

"Royal Mail has been delighted to mark the build-up to the Games and the successes of the Team GB and ParalympicsGB gold-medal winning athletes with a series of stamp issues," said Andrew Hammond, the managing director of stamps and collectibles for Royal Mail.

"We want these new stamps to remind people of the truly iconic moments of the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

"It is fitting that we mark some of the stand-out memories that helped make London 2012 one of the most successful ever."

The new stamps will be printed within a miniature sheet with a border that features a special quote from London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe that reflects on the huge success of both the Olympics and the Paralympics.

"The London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games produced some truly remarkable performances in a magnificent display of sporting endeavour and achievement," said Coe.

The final London 2012 stamps come after Royal Mail produce stamps to celebrate each individual or team gold medal won by Britain during the Olympics and the Paralympics.

The postal service had originally said they would not produce individual stamps to honour the ParalympicsGB champions from London 2012 but a public campaigned spearheaded by former Olympics Minister Dame Tessa Jowell urged Royal Mail to perform a U-turn.

By Tom Degun

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Colombo, Sri Lanka – West Indies legend Brian Lara was inducted into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame at the ICC Awards ceremony on Saturday night. The superb left-hander from Trinidad who set several records in his illustrious cricket career was warmly applauded and showered with praise as he became the 17th West Indian to be inducted.

Lara was smartly attired and flashed his trademark smile as he was presented with his ICC Hall of Fame cap. The former West Indies captain was accompanied by his brother Winston and sister Agnes at the gala ceremony at the Water’s Edge Resort. He dedicated the award to his late father Bunty Lara, who died before his son made his international debut for the West Indies.

“This person you see today before you accepting this Hall of Fame honour is someone he moulded. He ensured that I had everything I needed to succeed as a cricketer and in life, even in trying times. He made a special effort to make sure everything was there,” Lara said.

“I had to work hard...but I knew I had strong support. My biggest pain was that he did not see me play a Test match, but having the West Indies team in Trinidad at his funeral was a special tribute to the man who made sure I was given the tools to play this glorious game and make such a lasting contribution.”

Lara was one of the game’s most prolific batsmen. He represented the West Indies in 131 Tests in an international career that spanned 17 years. He amassed a West Indies record 11,953 runs at an average of 52.88 runs per innings. He made 34 Test centuries and 48 half-centuries. His highest score was the monumental 400 not out against England at the Antigua Recreational Ground in 2004 and to this day that score still remains the highest by any Test batsmen.

“Tonight I had my brother and my sister here with me. Agnes is the one who took me to my first coaching clinic when I was six, and Winston was a role model as a stylish right-handed batsman...so to have them here is very special,” Lara said.

“As a boy, you never really thought of Hall of Fames, you never really thought of records. Growing up in the 70s my heroes were Clive Lloyd, Viv Richards and Roy Fredericks as a left-handed batsman. I am happy I was able to spend 17 years in the West Indies and was able to contribute in a way worthy of this honour. It is nice to share it with my family. It is something I want all West Indians to aspire to.

“To share this with the greats of the past and to be included in the Hall of Fame alongside them is remarkable. I never played with most of them but this is one way to connect with them.”

In the 299 ODIs that Lara played he scored 10,405 runs at an average of 40.48 that included 19 centuries and 63 half-centuries. In 2004 when captaining the West Indies, he led the team to victory in the ICC Champions Trophy against England at the Oval. Lara’s first -class career began in 1987 and when it ended in 2008 he had scored 22,156 runs. His highest score was the amazing 501 not out for Durham against Warwickshire in the English County Championship in 1994.

Looking back at his career, Lara said the most rewarding period was the 1999 Test Series against Australia when he played two sensational back-to-the-wall innings to help the West Indies draw the four-match rubber. He made 213 in the second Test at Sabina Park in Jamaica and followed up with 153 not out in the next match at Kensington Oval in Barbados.

“The 213 against Australia in Jamaica is definitely my best innings. You have to understand the climate at that time and going into that match, landing in Jamaica and knowing that everyone was on the line – your captaincy, the series, respect and adoration by your fans...the mental strength that I mustered up during that week was something that when I looked back it was very hard to measure anything up against that,” Lara said.

“The performance was something I cherish and the fact that we won the match to level the series, after we were bowled out for 51 the week before in Trinidad, felt great. I thought the way I handled it was special. It is something I will never ever forget...it’s a day’s cricket I will be talking about for a very long time. The 153 in Barbados the following week was rated higher by Wisden and the cricketing gurus but the double century in Jamaica was my best effort.”

Lara, now 43, joins several other West Indies legends in the ICC Hall of Fame. They are: Lance Gibbs, Gordon Greenidge, George Headley, Michael Holding, Rohan Kanhai, Clive Lloyd, Malcolm Marshall, Sir Vivian Richards, Andy Roberts, Sir Garfield Sobers, Sir Clyde Walcott, Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Frank Worrell, Courtney Walsh, Joel Garner and Curtly Ambrose.

Source: www.windiescricket.com

U.S. Olympic Committee CEO Scott Blackmun has a hard time imagining all the changes that are sure to come in sport over the next 30 years. But he's certain of one thing: The Olympics will only grow in relevance.

In fact, if you want to picture the Olympic Games of 2042, imagine London, only colder, since those Games 30 years from now will be a Winter Olympics. From the emergence of women on every nation's team to the dominance of U.S. female athletes to the stated goal of creating role models to inspire a generation of children around the world, what happened in London sets the stage for many other Olympic Games to come.

"The London Games probably amplified more than any other what's different about the Olympics, that it's a values-based movement," he says.

"If you look at what happened in Qatar, Brunei and Saudi Arabia, where they had women competing for the first time, I think we've got tangible evidence coming out of these Games that the Olympic Games are making a difference not only in sport but in a broader context. As I look ahead, I think the Olympic Games are only going to increase in their relevance."

Blackmun, 53, points to what he calls "a culture of openness and inclusion" at the Games that he believes can provide an example to the world, not just in sports. "The Oscar Pistorius story is a great example of that," he says, referring to the "Blade Runner" who competed despite wearing prosthetics after having his legs amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old.

He also expects the rest of the world to continue pushing the USA to stay on its toes as the dominant international sports power.

"It's a sign that sport is alive and well," Blackmun says. "So far, we've been able to maintain our level of performance at the Games, but there's no question that we're going to need to continue the focus if we're going to continue to maintain our place on the medal stand."

That's especially true for the USA's female athletes, who won more than 60% of the nation's gold medals in London. "Because of Title IX, we had a huge head start vis-a-vis (other nations') women's teams over the past 30 years," he says. "It's going to be important for us to continue to focus on our women's program if we want to expect women to continue to have the opportunity to mount the podium, because other countries are catching up."

One need look no further than soccer, where Japan won the Women's World Cup in 2011 and pushed the United States to the final minute before losing the gold-medal game to the Americans 2-1.

Blackmun is concerned that over the next few decades, a top-down model for worldwide sport might not be enough to prevent the nation's plunge into the depths of childhood obesity and other health problems.

"What is the impact of the social changes (regarding a more sedentary population) that we're seeing now among our young people?" he says. "If we have a lot fewer kids participating in sport, what is that going to mean for sport at an elite level? If we have 100,000 kids playing soccer instead of millions of kids playing soccer, what is that going to mean?

"I think getting our arms around what Mrs. Obama is so focused on right now, which is how do we make sure our kids stay active and play and have fun, is going to be a key question for us as we look ahead."

Blackmun says the USOC's role in keeping children active is to push the 47 national governing bodies of sports under the USOC umbrella to act.

"We at the USOC are really focused on high performance," he says. "So making sure that our National Governing Bodies are focused on the grass roots and membership piece of their business is important."

By Christine Brennan, USA TODAY Sports

Source: www.usatoday.com

OLYMPIC 400m hurdles finalist, Jehue Gordon, was not too pleased on Thursday evening following a reception held by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar at the Diplomatic Centre for this country’s Olympians.

The Prime Minister used the occasion to announce a $300,000 reward for each member of this country’s 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams which earned bronze at the London Games. George Bovell III, a bronze medallist at the 2004 Games, also received $300,000 for his accomplishment eight years ago while the soon to be built National Aquatic Centre will now be named the George Bovell Aquatic Centre.

After the reception, Gordon took to social networking site Twitter to express his sentiments.

“Guess only the medallists and George Bovell are the only ones worthy to be honoured…Trini yes,” he tweeted.

The tweet attracted a lot of attention from Gordon’s followers with some urging him to not get discouraged while others warned him to not express his apparent disappointment so openly on Twitter.

The former World Junior gold medallist later attempted to clarify his tweet, posting “I’m not ‘toating’, it’s everyone who felt like this. We don’t need money you know…just appreciation for what we do.”

The original tweet was later deleted while attempts to reach Gordon for a comment were futile. Olympic bronze medallist, Richard Thompson, gave his two cents on the issue of rewarding Olympic finalists who did not finish in the top three.

Thompson, speaking to the media after receiving a National Award for his Olympic accomplishment feels the other finalists deserved some sort of gift as well.

“I do believe the finalists should be rewarded as well because just making it to the Olympics is very difficult and making it to a final is even more difficult. That in itself is a huge accomplishment because the entire world sees that flag on the line when you’re in the final,” he declared.

Taking a more reserved stance was 4x400m medallist, Jarrin Solomon who is just grateful to receive the cash from the Government.

“That is not really for us to decide. We all take what we got and we’re just grateful for that.

“As far as the finalists go, I know they all worked really hard and did well at the Olympics as well. We were able to come away with a medal while they made the final which in itself is a big feat. What the Prime Minister does we don’t have any say but I know everybody did their best at the Olympics,” he remarked.

By STEPHON NICHOLAS

Source: www.newsday.co.tt

Neil Black has been appointed as the new performance director of UK Athletics and charged with finding a replacement for Charles van Commenee, who quit as head coach on Tuesday (September 11) following the British team's failure to hit the medal target he had set at London 2012.

Black will take over a role that had remained unfilled since Dave Collins was fired after the Olympics in Beijing four years ago.

He will play a pivotal role in the build-up to the Rio 2016 Olympics and the 2017 World Championships in London. 

Black has been a pivotal figure in the success of Britain's top athletes for 20 years.

Initially as a physiotherapist and, since 2009, as the man in charge of performance support services, science and medicine, working closely alongside van Commenee and Peter Eriksson, the head coach of Britain's Paralympic athletics team. 

The lead up to 2012 has seen him coordinate all support elements for Britain's athletes, and he personally managed the support programmes for Jessica Ennis and Mo Farah, who between them won three of Britain's four gold medals in the Olympic Stadium. 

"Neil Black assuming the role of performance director is the culmination of succession planning we began when Charles first signed up as Olympic head coach on a four year deal in Beijing," said Niels de Vos, the chief executive of UK Athletics.

"Moving him from head physiotherapist into a general leadership role four years ago was done very much with this outcome in mind.

"He has been the 'glue' in the Olympic Task Force system I created, ensuring the right people, places and performance culture was in place to support the head coaches of the Olympic and Paralympic teams."

Black's promotion was backed by van Commenee, who will leave his current role in December when his contract expires after he resigned because Britain won only six medals in athletics, failing to hit the target of eight he had set.

"If I were ever CEO of a national athletics federation or even Olympic Association, Neil Black is the first guy I would call and try to hire," said the Dutchman.  

"I am 100 per cent happy that he is the right man, within the right structures, to push on with the next phase of the ten year plan we devised together back in 2008."

Black qualified as a physiotherapist in 1981 and has worked with the British track and field team since 1990.

"It is an honour to be given the chance to lead the Olympic and Paralympic Task Force and be asked to lead colleagues with whom I have worked hand in glove for the last four years," he said.

"The performance team has worked hard to change the structures and cultures of our sport and I very much look forward to working in partnership with colleagues to build on the success of the last four years as we continue on our journey to 2017."

By Duncan Mackay

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Sir Chris Hoy, Britain's most decorated Olympian, has been unveiled as the first official ambassador for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, which are now just under two years away.

The 36-year-old cyclist from Edinburgh proved one of the stars of the London 2012 Olympics this summer when he claimed two gold medals in the keirin and the team sprint to take his overall medal haul at the Games to six golds and a silver.

The new ambassador role means Sir Chris (pictured top), who is also a double Commonwealth Games gold medallist and 11-times world champion, is the first of a select group of high profile sporting and celebrity figures who will work with Glasgow 2014 over the next two years to promote the multisport event.

"The Commonwealth Games is a special event for me," said Sir Chris.

"I have fantastic memories of competing for Scotland in the Games on three separate occasions, especially winning my first major championship gold medal at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games.

"Following an incredible Olympics in London, I'm proud to lend my support to the next great sporting event on home soil.

"Making sure that people from all walks of life, especially young people, feel inspired to be a part of the Games will be a big focus for me."

Although specific details of Sir Chris' involvement with Glasgow 2014 have yet to be announced, his new role is set to include appearances in high profile promotional campaigns and events.

One such event is likely to include the opening of the brand new Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome next month, the venue for the track cycling competition at the Commonwealth Games.

It was announced in 2008 that the Velodrome would be named in honour of Sir Chris and he has hinted that competing at the venue at Glasgow 2014 would be a fitting end to his glittering career.

"London 2012 was the perfect way to end my Olympic career," he said.

"The Commonwealth Games are two years away and I haven't made any decisions yet.

"But to be able to compete in Glasgow in a Velodrome bearing my name would be the dream ending for me."

Glasgow 2014 chairman Lord Smith added that unveiling Sir Chris as the first ambassador for the Commonwealth Games is a huge moment for the Organising Committee.

"We could think of no person more appropriate than Sir Chris to be our first official ambassador," he said.

"I have no doubt that his success, his support, and his passion for Scotland will inspire people – spectators, volunteers and athletes – to get behind the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

"We are delighted to have the support of Britain's greatest Olympian."

Glasgow 2014 will be held from July 23 to August 3 and feature 17 sports across 11 days of competition with 250 medal events on show.

The Commonwealth Games will play host to 4,500 athletes and sell one million tickets, while 15,000 volunteers are set to feature.

By Tom Degun

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Guadalajara is confident of paying off its 399 million pesos (£19 million/$30 million/€24 million) debt from the 2011 Pan American Games by the end of the year in a move that could reignite the Mexican cities' bid for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games.

Fears had been growing that Guadalajara would have to pull the plug on their Youth Olympics bid because it still owes huge amounts of money to several firms involved in helping stage the Pan American Games (Opening Ceremony pictured top) last year.

But the Governor of Jalisco, Emilio González Márquez, who is also the Guadalajara 2011 chairman, believes the debt will be paid off by the end of the year.

"Transparency is a hallmark of this Government," he said.

"We feel we can pay all our bills by the end of the year and all our suppliers are aware of this."

Despite the reassurances given by Guadalajara, Pan American Sports Organisation (PASO) President Mario Vázquez Raña is said to be concerned about the issue and has requested clarification from the Organising Committee over how the debts will be paid.

The issue is a major headache for Guadalajara 2018 Youth Olympic bid leaders, many of whom worked on the Pan American Games, after the city was forced to withdraw from the 2014 Youth Olympic bid race on the eve of the vote following a poor evaluation report from the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Its 2018 bid prospects were boosted by a successful 2011 Pan American Games but the debt problems have cast a slight shadow over the competition.

It may also struggle because the race for the 2018 Youth Olympics is set to be the most competitive in the event's short history with the IOC also receiving bids from Buenos Aires, Glasgow, Medellín, Poznan and Rotterdam.

All six must submit their Candidature File and other relevant documents to the IOC by October 15 and it remains to be seen if Guadalajara will be able to do this.

It is likely that it will, however, the next big milestone will come in February next year when the IOC Executive Board will announce the shortlist of Candidate Cities.

The report by the IOC Evaluation Commission on the Candidate Cities will come in May 2013, with the election of the host city to be made by the IOC in July 2013.

By Tom Degun

Source: wwwinsidethegames.com

Eva Loeffler, daughter of the man who began the Paralympic Movement, Dr. Ludwig Guttman, has revealed that she is against the Paralympics merging with the Olympics for fear that the event will lose its unique identity.

The possibility of such a move has been mooted for several years now and has gained fresh momentum following the success of London 2012, which saw record crowds and television viewing figures.

International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Sir Philip Craven told the BBC earlier this year that he was "not dead against the idea, in principle".

Also, two years ago, during Vancouver 2010, Sir Philip's predecessor as IPC President, Canadian Robert Steadward, called for the Winter Olympics and Paralympics to be held together.

Having Paralympians taking part in the Olympics is something that Guttman himself predicted back in 1956.

Loeffler, who was the Mayor of the Paralympic Village during London 2012, admitted that although there were benefits to amputee athletes like South African Oscar Pistorius taking part in the Olympics, that there was a danger of it going too far.

"Whether it is a good thing I do not know," Loeffler told insidethegames.

"I think it may possibly be.

"That Oscar did not win [an Olympic medal] was fine in a way because had he won I think then there would have been discussions 'did he have an advantage'.

"Just like shooting and archery, people may think they have an advantage because they are sitting.

"I think it is a very good thing but it has its limitations.

"It raises the profile which is fine but to think of having wheelchair sport in the Olympics – like basketball or rugby is nonsensical.

"The Olympics should be competitions between Olympians and Paralympians, not to have separate games in the Olympics for wheelchair users."

Loeffler added that the complications of handling the increased number of athletes would present a logistical obstacle to such a merger.

"If you imagine having Olympic and Paralympic Games together, there are far too many people and the people who will be left out are certain to be Paralympians," she said.

"It is not at all possible."

Given her importance in the history of the Paralympic Movement, her words have a particular significance.

Loeffler fulfilled her duties as Paralympic Village Mayor by welcoming each national team and thousands of athletes at welcome ceremonies and showing dignitaries around the Olympic Park to take in the sports.

She said that the opportunity to perform the role was "a tremendous honour", and was keen to illustrate London 2012's success by pointing out that more visitors saw the first two days of action than turned up for 10 days of competition in Beijing four years' ago.

This summer's Paralympics were, of course, particularly poignant for Loeffler, coming as they do 64 years after the first Stoke Mandeville Wheelchair Games  at Stoke Mandeville hospital in 1948.

They attracted just 14 athletes, participating in sports such as shooting and archery, and Loeffler volunteered to help organise the activities.

In 1952 Dutch athletes came across to compete for the first time at the annual competition, conceived as a way of rehabilitating injured service personnel after the Second World War.

Guttman, a Jewish doctor who fled along with Eva and the rest of the family from Nazi Germany by boat a year before the war, believed that competition would help to improve those muscles which still worked.

He also believed it was a way to integrate disabled people into society.

With the success of the Stoke Mandeville Games he convinced organisers of the Rome Olympics to hold the Paralympics for the first time in the summer of 1960, and 300 athletes took part in those Games.

By David Gold

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake are the product of three generations of reformist politics and improved social conditions. Where does great achievement come from? In the minutes before Bolt, Blake and Weir of Jamaica took 1-2-3 in the 200m, the BBC played a short film which suggested that black athletes won medals because of "west African genes" and the unnatural selection of the "fittest" by plantation slavery. If either of these were sufficient explanation then such centres of new world slavery as Haiti and Brazil would also be athletic superpowers, as would Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Angola, and the Congo from which most slaves came, and the United States itself would not be increasingly pushed into the shade. Genes may help, but only one part of the African diaspora has won disproportionately in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.

Belarus shot putter Nadezhda Ostapchuk, who was stripped of the Olympic gold medal last month after testing positive for a banned anabolic steroid, has been handed a one-year suspension, the country's anti-doping agency (NADA) said yesterday.

Ostapchuk, 31, was given a lesser sentence than a standard two-year ban after her coach Alexander Yefimov admitted intentionally spiking her food with the steroid.

"Yefimov confessed he had put the banned drug metenolone into Ostapchuk's food without her knowledge because he was worried by her performances in the lead-up to the London Games," NADA head Alexander Vankhadlo told a news conference.

Yefimov has received a four-year suspension for his part in the doping case.

"He had admitted his guilt," added Vankhadlo.

Ostapchuk has denied any wrongdoing, saying she was tested twice before competing in London and both tests returned negative results.

"In total, I've been tested 16 times since April. You must be a complete idiot to take doping just before the competition especially such an outdated drug as a steroid, knowing you're going to be tested not once but probably several times," Ostapchuk said last month.

Ostapchuk, who had won the Olympic gold with a throw of 21.36 metres, was world champion in 2005 and European champion two years ago. In July, at a meeting in Minsk, she threw 21.58, the best outdoor distance in the world since 1998.

New Zealand's Valerie Adams, who finished second behind Ostapchuk in London, was awarded gold, with Russian Yevgeniya Kolodko promoted to silver and China's Gong Lijiao getting the bronze medal.

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com